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My College Football Picks, 2012 Week 13

This weekend, there are a bunch of games that were played Thursday and Friday. What's left includes a lot of lines that seem like crap shoots, so I'm only placing real money on five. Here are the spreads this week in all the games involving the BCS 25. My choices are shown in bold. My five *bets I like are marked by an asterisk. See if your picks can beat mine.

Saturday, Nov 24:
Connecticut @ #20 Louisville -10½
#19 Michigan @ #4 Ohio St. -4
#18 Rutgers @ Pittsburgh -1
GA Tech @ #3 Georgia -14½
*#5 Oregon @ #15 Oregon St. +9½
Auburn @ #2 Alabama -33
*#21 Okla St. @ #13 Oklahoma -6½
#4 Florida @ #10 Florida St. -7
*#8 Stanford @ #17 UCLA +3
Missouri @ #9 Texas A&M -22
*#12 South Carolina @ #11 Clemson -3½
*#1 Notre Dame @ USC +5½

These have been played:

Thursday, Nov 22:
TCU 20 @ #16 Texas 13 (I would have missed this)

Friday, Nov 23:
Ohio 6 @ #23 Kent St. 28 (I would have missed this)
#14 Nebraska 13 @ Iowa 7 (I would have missed this)
#7 LSU 20 @ Arkansas 13 (I would have hit this)
#25 Washington 28 @ Washington St. 31 (I would have hit this)
Arizona St. 41 @ #24 Arizona 34 (I would have hit this)

This week, the ten teams I am rooting for, in order, are: USC, Stanford, Oregon, Washington St., Arizona St.,  U.Conn, Pitt, Georgia Tech, Clemson, Auburn.

[ASU and WSU already won!]

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/odds

USC v Notre Dame for the 84th Time

It's USC v. Notre Dame, the 84th game in the greatest cross-sectional rivalry in college football. Here are the basic details:

Starting Time: Kickoff is officially scheduled for 5:00 p.m. PST. The actual kickoff time for the last 5 p.m. start between these teams was 5:12 p.m.

Broadcast: ABC-TV is in the house. ESPN College Game Day is also in town.

Records: USC is 7-4 (the same record USC had last time the Irish came around). USC's 5-4 conference record is 2nd-best in the Pac-12 South. Notre Dame is 11-0, best in the nation - only Ohio St. has an equal record.

Rankings: USC is unranked in any poll, but is not far back in the list of others receiving votes. Notre Dame is a consensus #1. This is the 8th time the Irish bring a #1 ranking into the game. (USC is 2-5 in the first seven, winning in 1938 and 1964). USC is 6-14 against undefeated Irish teams.

Odds: There was no line on this game initially, due to Matt Barkley's injury status, but USC has emerged as a 5½ point underdog. This is, by the way, the lowest point spread a #1 team has ever had against an unranked opponent.

Streaks: USC has won nine of the last ten against the Irish, but the teams have split the last two games. The road team has won three straight. The last Notre Dame win came in 2010.

Weather: It will be fairly warm, coming off a high of 77°, it should be clear and 69° at kickoff, dropping to about 62° near the end of the game. Partially cloudy or foggy conditions are not expected until after the game is over.

Webcams: USC has Tommy Trojan on a webcam. Notre Dame has the golden dome on a webcam, too. Actually, Notre Dame is full of webcams, including the Clark Memorial Fountain, South Quad, North Quad and DeBartolo Quad.

History: The series began in 1926, when Knute Rockne took his team to the West Coast, reportedly because his wife wanted a warm-weather holiday. Though they had just one national title between them then, USC and Notre Dame were becoming national football powerhouses, and in the first seven seasons of the rivalry, the winner of the game ended up as national champions five times! At first, the games alternated between Chicago's Soldier Field and Los Angeles's Memorial Coliseum. Since 1931, Notre Dame has hosted the games in odd-numbered years at Notre Dame Stadium. Last year, USC won at Notre Dame 34-27. In the last game in L.A., USC won 38-3. The largest margin of victory in the rivalry was 51 points, by Notre Dame in a 1966 shutout. USC's largest margin of victory is 38, in 2007 at South Bend. USC and Notre Dame are two of just four FBS teams never to have played a lower division opponent since the current divisional alignments were established. (UCLA and Washington are the others.)

The Prize: The winner of the game keeps the Shillelagh, a club made of Irish wood, for a year. This Shillelagh adds an emerald-studded shamrock for each Notre Dame win, and a ruby-studded Trojan head for each USC win, right next to the engraved score of each game. The original Shillelagh was filled up after the 1989 game and is on display at Notre Dame. This year's game is a battle for the current, second, Shillelagh, which is on display at USC's Heritage Hall.

Head-to-Head Record: No team has beaten USC more times than Notre Dame. No team has beaten Notre Dame more times than USC. Notre Dame leads the all-time series 43-35-5. The series is streaky. USC has won the last 9 of the last 10 games. The Irish won the 3 before that. USC won the 3 before that. Notre Dame won 12 of the 13 before that. Since the 1960s, the series has been almost even. At the Coliseum, USC leads 21-18-4, and in my lifetime, USC leads 24-18-3.

National Titles: USC has won 11 national championships in football: 1928-31-32-39-62-67-72-74-78-2003-2004. Several, including the 2003 title, were split titles. In five other seasons -- 1929, 1933, 1976, 1979 and 2002 -- the Trojans were chosen as the number one team by at least selector, but not one with sufficient prestige to call themselves national champions. Notre Dame also claims 11 national titles, but all 11 were consensus titles.

Heisman Trophies: USC was tied with Notre Dame and Ohio State with seven, but with Reggie Bush forfeiting his, the Trojans are back to six and counting. Aside from Bush, USC's last winner was Matt Leinart in 2004. The Irish last won with Tim Brown in 1987.

Injuries: As was the case in 2010, USC is expected to start a backup QB due to the injury to Matt Barkley.

Bowls: Notre Dame is playing for a BCS championship game slot. The Trojans are probably headed to the Sun Bowl, but could be selected by the Alamo Bowl or Holiday Bowl with a big win over the #1 Irish, depending upon what Stanford, Oregon State and UCLA do this weekend. Bowls with Pac-12 affiliations can take 5-4 USC ahead of any Pac-12 team with a 6-3 record or worse.

Tickets: This game is sold out.

Seniors: This will be the final home game for most of USC's 20 seniors. Three of them could be back next year, due to injuries extending their eligibility or potential eligibility. Seven of them are regular starters. Several juniors, most notably, WR Robert Woods and CB Nickell Robey, might leave for the NFL, making this their final home game as well.

No. Name Pos. Hgt. Wgt. Cl.(Ath/Ac) Exp. Hometown(HighSchool/JC/College)
7    Barkley, Matt    QB    6-2    230    SR    3V    Newport Beach, CA (Mater Dei HS)
7    McDonald, T.J.    S    6-3    205    SR    3V    Fresno, CA (Edison HS)
17    Saee, Emon    QB    6-1    200    RS SR    SQ    Calabasas (Calabasas)
18    Manoogian, John    QB    6-0    220    RS SR    SQ    Los Angeles (Windward)
19    McAllister, Drew S    6-1    205    RS SR    4V    Danville, CA (Monte Vista HS)
22    McNeal, Curtis    TB    5-7    190    RS SR    2V    Los Angeles, CA (Venice HS)
24    Matranga, Eric    WR    5-10    180    SR    TR    Carmichael (Glendale JC)
29    Starling, Jawanza S    6-1    200    SR    3V    Tallahassee, FL (Lincoln HS)
30    Baucham, Brian    CB    5-11    170    RS SR    2V    Torrance, CA (West Torrance HS)
34    Burnett, Tony    LB    6-1    205    RS SR    2V    Watts (Los Angeles SW JC)
35    Negrete, Kyle    P    6-0    225    RS SR    1V    Fresno, CA (San Diego)
40    Mojica, Robert    TB    5-9    180    SR    TR    Dana Point (SMU)
42    Kennard, Devon    DE    6-3    260    SR    2V    Phoenix, AZ (Desert Vista HS)
44    Larsen, Chandler FB-TE    6-0    225    RS SR    --    Oak Park, Calif. (Oak Park HS)
45    Scott, Doug    LB    6-2    200    RS SR    SQ    San Diego, Calif. (Cathedral Catholic/WMU/El Camino JC)
50    Markowitz, Abe    C    6-1    305    RS SR    SQ    Hawaii Kai, HI (Punahou HS)
52    Kelley, Dallas    LB    5-11    225    SR    SQ    Norco, CA (Chaffey JC)
74    Galten, Jeremy    OT-OG    6-5    290    SR    1V    San Mateo, CA (San Mateo JC)
78    Holmes, Khaled    C    6-4    305    RS SR    3V    Santa Ana, CA (Mater Dei HS)
92    Kusnir, Zack    DT    6-5    265    SR    SQ    La Jolla, Ca. (San Diego State)
96    Horton, Wes    DE    6-5    255    RS SR    3V    Chatsworth, CA (Notre Dame HS)

Game Promotions: USC’s football seniors will be saluted prior to the game while running through the Heritage Tunnel, comprised of former Trojans. USC head coach Lane Kiffin is hosting the Kiff’s Kids toy drive to benefit children from the local community (fans are encouraged to bring a toy or unwrapped gift to collection boxes set up around the Coliseum)…Steve Johnson, the 2013 NCAA men’s tennis single champion who played on 4 consecutive NCAA championship USC teams, will be saluted on the field…USC professor Jae Jung will be recognized for receiving the 2012 HO-Am Prize in Medicine, Korea’s equivalent of the Noble prize.

Coaches: USC's Lane Kiffin and Notre Dame's Brian Kelly meet for the third time, splitting their first two games.

Catholics v. Protestants: Notre Dame was founded as a Roman Catholic university. USC was founded as a Methodist university. When Notre Dame first came to Southern California, the Trojans were a Methodist campus. In fact, the Trojans were once known as the USC Wesleyans or the USC Methodists. Despite a reference on wikipedia, rumors that USC athletes were once referred to as the "Fighting Methodists" are unsubstantiated. Personally, I think God has more important things to care about than who wins a football game, but to my fellow Catholics who seem to think that it is unholy for a Catholic to root against Notre Dame, let me remind you that Notre Dame's famous Touchdown Jesus should properly be referred to by His full name:

TOUCHDOWN JESUSCHRIST

Memorable Anniversaries - Here are some games folks will be remembering this year.

• 15 years (1997 - USC 20 Notre Dame 17): USC won in South Bend for the first time in more than a decade, after Notre Dame missed three field goals. The Trojans, who entered the game with a 3-3 record, needed a Mark Cusano interception in the fourth quarter to ice the win. Cusano, who had batted down a 4th down pass in overtime the prior season to end a 13 year winless streak against the Irish, forever sealed his reputation among Trojan fans as an Irish-killer.
• 20 years (1982 - USC 17 Notre Dame 13): USC won on a controversial call, as Trojan running back Michael Harper scored the winning touchdown on a play in which he appeared to fumble the ball before breaking the plane of the goal line. The resulting bad karma brought 13 years of bad luck to the Trojans, who lost the next 11 games against the Irish, and managed only a tie in the two games afte that. USC finished 8-3, were ineligible to appear in a bowl game due to an NCAA probation. After the season, USC coach John Robinson left for the NFL.
• 35 years (1977 - Notre Dame 49 USC 19): The Green Jersey Game. Before the game, "Dump Devine" stickers were being sold outside Notre Dame Stadium. During pregame warmups, the Irish players wore traditional navy blue jerseys, then retired to the locker room where they found Devine had left green jerseys in their lockers. They changed and returned to the field with the team captains inside a Trojan Horse dragged by the Notre Dame cheerleaders. The crowd energy never waned as the Irish won big and continued to wear the green jerseys until their win over Texas in the Cotton Bowl that sealed Devine's first and only national championship.
• 40 years (1972 - USC 45 Notre Dame 23): USC was 10-0 and ranked #1. The Irish were 8-1 headed to the Orange Bowl. Trojan tailback Anthony Davis scored six touchdowns, including two kickoff returns. It was the most points USC had ever scored against Notre Dame, setting a team record that would last just two seasons.
• 45 years (1967 - USC 24 Notre Dame 7): Coming off a 51-0 loss the year before, No. 1 ranked USC came in as a big underdog to fifth-ranked Notre Dame, the defending national champions. Trailing 7-0 at halftime, the Trojans came back in the second half thanks to O.J. Simpson's three touchdowns on 160 yards rushing. It was USC's first win in South Bend since 1939. The Trojans went on to win the 1967 national championship.

Blogs and Info Sites For the Trojans:

USC Football Official

USC Rips It - USC's official blog

USC at the OC Register - the best independent USC blog

Scott Wolf's Inside USC - LA Daily News Trojanblog

ESPN's USC Boards

TributeToTroy - Trojan football news and information

TrojanWire - news

USCFootball - Rivals USC Football site (news, forums, recruiting info)

FightOn - More Trojan football links

TrojanFB - video, photos, more

The Living Room Times - a USC grad who went to Notre Dame for law school

Conquest Chronicles

Blogs and Info Sites For Notre Dame:

Notre Dame Official

USAToday Notre Dame Pages

ESPN's Notre Dame Boards

Irish Sports Report

South Bend Tribune info

The Irish discussion boards

The House Rock Built

Her Loyal Sons

Rakes of Mallow

Irish Insights

Irish Round Table

Video Highlights of the Last 4 Games Between USC and Notre Dame

2008: USC 38 Notre Dame 3

 

2009: USC 34 Notre Dame 27

 

2010: Notre Dame 20 USC 16

 

2011: USC 31 Notre Dame 17

 

Finally, although it's no longer as relevant or fair, here's a funny fake Real Men of Genius commercial. We salute you, Mr. Delusional Irrational Notre Dame Football Fan.

 

The Bottom 10 - 2012 Week 12

We are down to one winless team: Southern Miss. Massachusetts beat Akron for its first win in the FBS, so they drop to #6 this week. Here are this week's rankings:

1. Southern Miss (0-11) [1] 11 game losing streak is longest in the nation. Next loss: @ Memphis
2. Idaho (1-10) *[2] Defense gave up 50+ four times. Next loss: @ Utah St.
3. Colorado (1-10)* [3] Even lost to Sacramento St. Next loss: Utah
4. Akron (1-10) [5] Only beat Morgan St. 66-6. Next loss: @ Toledo
5. Massachusetts (1-10) [6] New losing streak is one.  Next loss: Central Michigan
6. UNLV (2-10) * [7] Lost to Northern Arizona Next loss: @ Hawaii
7. Army (2-9)* [9] Lost to Stony Brook. Next loss: Navy
8. New Mexico State (1-9) [10] Beat only Sacramento St.. Next loss: BYU
9. Hawaii (1-9) [NR] Beat only Lamar. Next loss: UNLV
10. Kansas (1-10) [NR] Beat only S. Dakota St. Next loss: Bye

Dropped up: Memphis (8), won its third game; Kentucky (4), not so much because of win over Samford, but because earlier win over Kent St. looks good in hindsight

Not far ahead: Eastern Michigan

Crummy Game of the Weak: UNLV @ Hawaii

Blowout of the Weak:Idaho @ Utah St.

Dishonorable mentions: *Pitt, *Middle Tenn. St., *Wyoming, *Memphis

* lost to FCS team(s)

My College Football Top 25, 2012 Week 12

If I had an AP vote, here is what my ballot would look after week twelve, with my week eleven picks in brackets:

1. Notre Dame [4]
2. Ohio State [3]
3. Clemson [5]
4. Florida State [6]
5. Oregon [1]
6. Alabama [7]
7. Georgia [8]
8. Florida [9]
9. Stanford [12]
10. Texas A&M [14]
11. LSU [10]
12. Kansas State [2]
13. Oklahoma [11]
14. South Carolina [13]
15. Oregon St. [15]
16. Nebraska [17]
17. Texas [18]
18. UCLA [23]
19. Louisville [19]
20. Rutgers [21]
21. Michigan [24]
22. Oklahoma St.[25]
23. Arizona [NR]
24. USC [16]
25. Washington [NR]

Dropped out:  Louisiana Tech [20], Texas Tech [22]

I almost went with: Northern Illinois, Utah St.

I knew it! Nada

I blew it! USC

I think the AP is overrating: Notre Dame, Georgia, LSU, Kent St.

I can't believe anyone gave votes this week to: San Diego St., Northwestern

Your New College Football Champions - The Baylor Bears

Well, this is awkward. In the history of the Belt as I have been tracking it since 2005, this might be the worst team to ever even briefly possess it. Kansas State held the Belt and had a #1 ranking in the BCS, #2 in the AP and Coaches polls. They traveled to Baylor, the 9th place team in the 10-team Big XII, sporting a 1-5 conference record. Baylor won. The Bears not only stunned the Wildcats, they whooped their asses, more than doubling up on KSU by a score of 52-24. Kansas State not only lost the Belt, but also any chance at the BCS Championship game.

Since I've been following this method of crowning my own national champion, I've only posted when there was a new champion. Here is the history of my belt, awarded in accordance with the belt method:

• Texas took it from undisputed champion USC in the 2006 Rose Bowl.
• On September 9, 2006, #1 Ohio State gained the belt by defeating the #2 Texas Longhorns 24-7.
• On January 8, 2007, #2 Florida won the belt and the BCS by defeating the #1 Buckeyes 41-14.
• On September 29, 2007, the Auburn Tigers took the belt with a 20-17 win at #4 Florida.
• On October 20, 2007, #5 LSU obtained the belt from #18 Auburn with a 30-24 victory.
• On November 23, 2007, Arkansas took the title from #1 LSU with a 50-48 victory.
• On January 1, 2008, #7 Missouri took the belt away with a 38-7 win in the Cotton Bowl.
• On October 11, 2008, #3 Missouri lost the title to #17 Oklahoma State 28-23.
• On October 25, 2008, #1 Texas won back the belt by defeating #6 Oklahoma State 28-24.
• On November 1, 2008, #7 Texas Tech won the belt by defeating #1 Texas 39-33.
• On November 22, 2008, #5 Oklahoma took the belt by defeating #2 Texas Tech 65-21.
• On January 8, 2009, #2 Florida took the belt, and the BCS title, by beating the #1 Sooners 24-14.
• On December 5, 2009, Alabama won the belt (and later the BCS) by beating the Gators 32-13.
• On October 9, 2010, #19 South Carolina took the belt from #1 BCS champ Alabama 35-21.
• On October 16, 2010, Kentucky took the belt by defeating #10 South Carolina 31-28.
• On October 23, 2010, Georgia took the belt by winning at Kentucky, 44-31.
• On October 30, 2010, Florida took the belt by beating Georgia 34-31 in OT.
• On November 13, 2010,#23 South Carolina reclaimed the belt from #22 Florida 36-14.
• On December 4, 2010, #1 Auburn won Belt and BCS from #19 usc 56-17 in the SEC title game.
• On September 17, 2011, Clemson took it from #21 Auburn 38-24.
• On October 29, 2011, Georgia Tech tore it away from #5 Clemson, 31-14.
• On November 10, 2011, Virginia Tech took it from #20 Georgia Tech 37-26.
• On December 4, 2011, #21 Clemson took it from #5 VA Tech in the ACC title game, 38-10.
• On January 4, 2012, #23 West Virginia took it from #14 Clemson in the Orange Bowl, 70-33.
• On October 3, 2012, Texas Tech ripped it from the #5 Mountaineers 49-14.
• On October 27, 2012, #3 Kansas State took it with a 55-24 win over the #14 Red Raiders.
• On November 17, 2012, Baylor stunned visiting #2 Kansas State 52-24.

The Bears will defend the belt against Texas Tech. If they win, they take the Belt to Oklahoma St. next week.

When UCLA Last Won The Rose Bowl

USC played another mistake-filled game yesterday, and suddenly all my Bruin friends are going out of their way to tell me that it's a new era, and UCLA is back.

In the Pac-12, you aren't really back until you win a Rose Bowl.

And it's been a long time since UCLA won a Rose Bowl. How long?

This long: when UCLA last won a Rose Bowl,

• Ronald Reagan was still president
• There were two Germanies
• There was no Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame
• No one had ever heard of Chernobyl
• Every Space Shuttle was still intact
• No one had ever caught a computer virus
• Macs didn't have color screens
• You couldn't drive or take a train from England to France
• People couldn't wait for Top Gun to come out
• and no one knew who Ferris Bueller was
• Gasoline was 93 cents a gallon
• The Dow was under 1600
• Patrick Ewing was in the middle of a spectacular rookie season
• David Robinson hadn't finished growing
• Barack Obama was thinking about applying to law school
• Family Ties and the Cosby Show were the top TV shows
• World population was under 5 billion (it's now over 7 billion)
• "Say You, Say Me" was the number one song on Billboard
• Long Beach St. and Cal State Fullerton had division I football teams
• There were 21 independents
• Division I football conferences included the Southwest Conference, the Missouri Valley Conference, and the Pacific Coast Athletic Association
• The Big XII was the Big 8
• Anaheim and Fresno were bowl game destinations
• L. Ron Hubbard, James Cagney and Cary Grant were still alive, and of course,
• None of the current UCLA football players had been born

Man, that was a long, long time ago.

So enjoy your schadenfreude, my Bruin friends, but don't go high-fiving yourselves raw just yet.

You need to beat Stanford and/or Oregon and then probably Nebraska before you get to call yourselves Rose Bowl Champions again.

2012 ... And Then There Were 2

I was right again last week. I said "I wouldn't be surprised to see one or teams lose this week. I can't imagine Notre Dame being one of them." Two teams lost. Notre Dame wasn't one of them. The Irish are the new #1, and there are now just two perfect teams in the FBS. The Top Two (with AP rankings in parentheses followed by their opponent this week) are these guys:

1. Notre Dame (1) - @ USC
2. Ohio St. (4) - Michigan

My prediction: there are no unbeaten teams after Saturday.

My College Football Picks, 2012 Week 12

This weekend, there are a bunch of games without lines. About half the SEC is playing an FCS opponent. Here are the spreads this week in all the games involving the BCS 25, plus a couple of extras. My choices are shown in bold. Seven *bets I really like are marked by an asterisk. See if your picks can beat mine.

Saturday, Nov 17:
Iowa @ #21 Michigan -17
#10 Florida St. @ Maryland +31
* #22 Rutgers @ Cincinnati -6½
W. Carolina @ #4 Alabama
Wofford @ #9 South Carolina
J'ville St @ #6 Florida
GA Southern @ #5 Georgia
* #25 Washington @ Colorado +20½
* #18 USC @ #17 UCLA +3½
Sam Houston @ #8 Texas A&M
Minnesota @ #14 Nebraska  -21
N.C. St @ #11 Clemson -16½
* Wake Forest @ #3 Notre Dame -24
Mississippi @ #7 LSU -19½
* Ohio St. @ Wisconsin -2½
#23 Texas Tech @ #24 Okla St. -9½
Utah St @ #20 LA Tech +3
#12 Oklahoma @ W Virginia +11½
* #1 Kansas St @ Baylor +12½
* #13 Stanford @ #2 Oregon -20½
California @ #16 Oregon St. -14½

I'm watching these games outside the BCS 25, too:

Washington St. @ Arizona St. -22
Arizona @ Utah -1½

This Saturday, the ten teams I am rooting for, in order, are: USC, Stanford, Notre Dame, Minnesota, Maryland, NC State, Ole Miss, Wisconsin, West Virginia & Cal.

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/odds

Troy Week 2012 - Photos and Video From USC-UCLA Lore

The USC-UCLA rivarly has produced a decent history of college pranking. A helicopter drop of manure on Tommy Trojan is widely considered once of the best pranks ever (though well short of Caltech's all-time great Rose Bowl prank), although reportedly most of the manure got sucked up by the helicopter blades. Every year, the most foreseeable prank is a paint-the-mascot attack. USC tries to thwart the Bruins by wrapping Tommy Trojan with duct tape and having the Trojan Knights stand guard around the clock. The Bruins, meanwhile, put the Bruin Bear Security Force to work, standing guard 24 hours a day, protecting the hibernating Bruin Bear (which is a redundancy, is it not?) until Wednesday. Why stop on Wednesday morning? USC pranksters don't care. They just like the opportunity. Vulnerability means a fresh coat or two of paint. As shown below:

Heh. USC, meanwhile, even puts Tirebiter under lock and key.

Now, courtesy of YouTube, some USC-UCLA video for your enjoyment.

A general preview of the rivalry.

 

Last year's 50-0 game:

 

Some highlights from 2010.

 

The end of the 2009 game - timeouts, a TD bomb and a fight.

 

Highlights of the 2008 game, a 28-7 USC win at the Rose Bowl.

Part three of a three part set of highlights from their 2007 game at the Coilseum, a 24-7 win for USC:

UCLA's last win was in 2006:

 

 

USC's postgame celebration if they win:

UCLA's postgame celebration if they win:

USC has the Song Girls:

UCLA has this guy:

Ain't this just like a Bruin:

Fight On!

The Bottom 10 - 2012 Week 11

We are down to one winless team: Southern Miss. Massachusetts beat Akron for its first win in the FBS, so they drop to #6 this week. Here are this week's rankings:

1. Southern Miss (0-10) [2] Only 10 game losing streak in the nation. Next loss: @ UTEP
2. Idaho (1-9) *[3] Defense gave up 50+ four times. Next loss: UTSA
3. Colorado (1-9)* [4] Lost to Sacramento St. Next loss: #25 Washington
4. Kentucky (1-9) [6] Cost their coach his job. Next loss: Samford
5. Akron (1-10) [7] Only beat Morgan St. 66-6. Next loss: @ Toledo
6. Massachusetts (1-9) [1] Finally beat someone.  Next loss: Buffalo
7. UNLV (2-9) * [8] Lost to Northern Arizona Next loss: Wyoming
8. Memphis (2-8)* [5] Beat Tulane, lost to Tenn-Martin. Next loss: @ UAB
9. Army (2-8)* [10] Lost to Stony Brook. Next loss: Temple
10. New Mexico State (1-9) [NR] Beat only Sacramento St.. Next loss: BYU

Dropped up: Wyoming (9), won its third game.

Not far ahead: Hawaii (beat only Lamar), Kansas (beat only S. Dakota St.)

Crummy Game of the Weak: Kentucky @ Samford

Blowout of the Weak: Colorado @ #25 Washington

Dishonorable mentions: *Pitt, *Middle Tenn. St., *Wyoming 

* lost to FCS team(s)

Troy Week 2012 - More USC-UCLA Game Notes

More stuff about Saturday's USC/UCLA game:

Signature Victories: USC's top 10 wins over the Bruins (#1 led to a national championship). UCLA's top 10 wins over the Trojans (#1 left USC having to "settle" for the Rose Bowl that year).

Webcams: USC has Tommy Trojan on a webcam. UCLA has Royce Hall on a webcam. Joe Bruin is not on a webcam.

Weather: The current forecast is for partly cloudy skies, with light 5-10 mph winds, a 30% chance of passing showers and an afternoon high of 70°. The game starts at 12:05 p.m. PST.

Connections: Two USC players—S T.J. McDonald and S Marshall Jones—have brothers who play for UCLA (S Tevin McDonald and TB Malcolm Jones) . USC offensive coordinator/running backs coach Kennedy Polamalu was a graduate assistant coach at UCLA in 1992 and 1993, working with the secondary and special teams. USC DE Wes Horton is the son of former UCLA offensive tackle Myke Horton, who lettered there 2 years (1973-74). USC C Abe Markowitz’s father, Barry, lettered as a linebacker at UCLA in 1974 while his great grandfather, Richard Love, played basketball and tennis at UCLA in the 1920s and his cousin Frank Manumaleuga played football at UCLA in 1974.

Blogs and Info Sites For the Trojans:

USC Football Official

USC Freedomblogging - the OC Register's USC blog

TributeToTroy - Trojan football news and information

TrojanWire - news

USCFootball - Rivals USC Football site (news, forums, recruiting info)

WeAreSC - Insiders USC Football site (news, forums, recruiting info)

FightOn - More Trojan football links

Conquest Chronicles - a great fan site

Scott Wolf's Inside USC - LA Daily News Trojanblog

ESPN's USC Boards

Awesome stuff.

Blogs and Info Sites for the Bruins.

Bruinville

The Bruin Show

www.beatsc.com

Bruin Blitz

Bruin Gold

Bruin Report Online

Bruins Nation

Inside UCLA

Trojan-Haters Club

UCLA Bruins Fans

UCLA Bruins Official Site

Stuff.

My College Football Top 25, 2012 Week 11

If I had an AP vote, here is what my ballot would look after week eleven, with my week ten picks in brackets:

1. Oregon [2]
2. Kansas State [3]
3. Ohio State [4]
4. Notre Dame [5]
5. Clemson [6]
6. Florida State [7]
7. Alabama [1]
8. Georgia [8]
9. Florida [10]
10. LSU [11]
11. Oklahoma [12]
12. Stanford [14]
13. South Carolina [15]
14. Texas A&M [16]
15. Oregon St. [13]
16. USC [17]
17. Nebraska [18]
18. Texas [19]
19. Louisville [9]
20. Louisiana Tech [20]
21. Rutgers [22]
22. Texas Tech [23]
23. UCLA [24]
24. Michigan [25]
25. Oklahoma St.[NR]

Dropped out:   Mississippi St. [21]

I almost went with: Wisconsin, Kent. St.

I knew it! Toledo, Mississippi St.

I blew it! Louisville

I think the AP is overrating: UCLA, Notre Dame

I can't believe anyone gave votes this week to: San Diego St., Northwestern

Troy Week 2012 - Why The Game's So Great

There are many other great rivalries in college football: Michigan & Ohio State, Auburn & Alabama, Florida & Florida St., Harvard & Yale, Army & Navy, Stanford & Cal, and so on and so on and so on. But there are no two strong rivals in college football who share the same city. USC-UCLA is unique in that regard. What makes it so great? Here's what I tell people every year:

The Thrill of Victory: The prize for this game is the Victory Bell. The winner keeps the Victory Bell for a year and paints it their team's colors. Since 1942, the Victory Bell has awarded to the winner of this game. The bell originally rang atop a Southern Pacific locomotive. It was donated to the UCLA student body in 1939 and it was used to proclaim each UCLA touchdown for two seasons. In 1941, six USC fraternity men heisted the truck that was taking the bell back to Westwood, and it was hidden away for more than a year. A series of retaliatory pranks ended with a badly needed truce, in which the student body presidents signed an agreement to make the bell a trophy given to the annual winner of the football game. It now traditionally comes out only for the first three quarters of this game. This year, the Victory Bell is painted cardinal and gold. It has only changed from cardinal and gold to baby blue and gold once in the last two decades.

The Agony of Defeat: Despite the loss to the Ohio State University, Michigan fans can still wear Wolverine gear around Ann Arbor and face little ridicule from Buckeye fans. But the loser of the USC-UCLA game can't wear their colors around town without somebody popping off. Wins in basketball season don't ease the pain. A College World Series title doesn't absolve you. Volleyball? Water polo? Tennis? Track? Fuggedaboudit. The winner of this game can have their fans openly dig their team for the next year. The loser and its fans are losers for the rest of the year, at home and abroad. For eight long years, we were up to our necks in Bruin crap. For seven years, Bruin fans have had to put up with the same from the Trojans. Some Bruins fans are still basking in the glow of their 13-9 upset in 2006, but the Trojans have a new five-year winning streak working. The sting is worse because UCLA and USC fans and players share the same city, the same neighborhoods, the same high school alma maters, even the same households. On this year's teams, the starting safeties - USC's T.J. McDonald and UCLA's Tevin McDonald - are brothers.

The Glory of Pac-10 Pac-12 Titles and Bowl Berths: For most of the last 25 seasons, this game has had an impact on the Pac-10 championship, a BCS bowl bid or a national championship. In 1998, UCLA was atop the BCS standings and finishing off just the 4th perfect 8-0 conference record in Pac-10 history. (They lost to Miami the next week in a hurricane postponed game that was supposed to have been played in September.) In 2002, USC went to the Rose Bowl and won, 52-21, to set the stage for their Orange Bowl-sealing win over Notre Dame the following week. In 2003, the Trojans beat UCLA, 47-22, to clinch the Pac-10 title and set up their move to the top of the polls the following week. In 2004, a 29-24 win at the Rose Bowl sent the Trojans back to the Orange Bowl for the BCS title game. In 2005, a 66-19 victory clinched USC's 30th Rose Bowl appearance. In 2006, UCLA dropped the Trojans from the BCS championship game to the Rose Bowl. In 2007 and 2008, Trojan wins secured their place in the Rose Bowl. This year, the game decides whether USC or UCLA plays in the Pac-12 championship game with a shot at the Rose Bowl.

2012 ... And Then There Were 4

I was right last week. I said "I wouldn't be surprised to see two teams lose this week. I would be surprised if Oregon was one of them, though." Two teams lost. Oregon wasn't one of them. The Ducks are the new #1, and there are now just four perfect teams in the FBS. The Final Four (with AP rankings in parentheses followed by their opponent this week) are these guys:

1. Oregon (1) - Stanford
2. Kansas St. (2) - @ Baylor
3. Notre Dame (3) - Wake Forest
4. Ohio St. (6) - @ Wisconsin

I wouldn't be surprised to see one or teams lose this week. I can't imagine Notre Dame being one of them.

My College Football Picks, 2012 Week 11

This weekend, I'm picking mostly home teams in the morning, and mostly visitors in the afternoon. Here are the spreads this week in all the games involving the BCS 25, plus a couple of extras. My choices are shown in bold. Seven *bets I really like are marked by an asterisk. See if your picks can beat mine.

Saturday, Nov 10:
#24 Northwestern @ Michigan -9½
Iowa St. @ #17 Texas -10½
* Kansas @ #22 Texas Tech -26
#9 Louisville @ Syracuse +2
* Arkansas @ #8 South Carolina -14
Army @ #23 Rutgers -17
LA Lafayette @ #6 Florida -27
* Arizona St. @ #19 USC -9
#11 Oregon St. @ #14 Stanford -4
Penn St. @ #16 Nebraska -8½
Maryland @ #13 Clemson -31½
Baylor @ #12 Oklahoma -21½
#15 Texas A&M @ #1 Alabama -13½
#20 LA Tech @ Texas St. +20½
#2 Kansas St. @ TCU +7
* #5 Georgia @ Auburn +15
#21 Miss. St. @ #7 LSU -15½
* #4 Notre Dame @ Boston College +19
* #3 Oregon @ California +28½
* #18 UCLA @ Wash St. +16½

I'm watching these games outside the BCS 25, too:

Colorado @ Arizona -29 (because it's Pac-12)
Mass @ Akron -16½ (because 1-9 is favored by 16½)

This Saturday, the ten teams I am rooting for, in order, are: USC, Boston College, Washington St., Syracuse, Arkansas, Stanford, Penn St., Maryland, Baylor and Auburn.

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/odds

The Bottom 10 - 2012 Week 10

We still have two winless teams: Mass. and Southern Miss. Massachusetts has its best opportunity of the year, however, traveling to Akron, which, aside from its whipping of Morgan St., has only been within a touchdown twice this season. Three teams in the bottom ten this week won, but all three have losses to FCS teams soiling their 2-win seasons. There are also still several teams knocking at the bottom, with zero wins against FBS teams. Here's the bottom of the barrel.

1. Massachusetts (0-9) [1] Longest losing streak in FBS at 12 games.  Next loss: @ Akron
2. Southern Miss (0-9) [2] Scored over 25 once. Surrendered less than 25 twice. Next loss: @ SMU
3. Idaho (1-8) *[4] Defense gave up 60+ three times. Next loss: @ BYU
4. Colorado (1-8)* [7] Lost to Sacramento St. Next loss: @ Arizona
5. Memphis (1-8)* [8] Lost to Tenn-Martin. Next loss: Tulane
6. Kentucky (1-9) (9] Cost their coach his job. Next loss: Bye
7. Akron (1-9) [10] Only beat Morgan St. 66-6. Next loss: U. Mass
8. UNLV (2-8) * [3] Lost to Northern Arizona Next loss: @ CSU
9. Wyoming (2-7)* [5] Lost to Cal Poly. Next loss: @ New Mexico
10. Army (2-7)* [6] Lost to Stony Brook. Next loss: @ #23 Rutgers

Dropped up: None

Not far ahead: Three teams that are winless against the FBS: Hawaii (beat Lamar), Kansas (beat S Dakota St.), New Mexico State (beat Sacramento St.), but at least beat their FCS opponent.

Crummy Game of the Weak: Mass @ Akron

Blowout of the Weak: Army @ Rutgers

Dishonorable mentions: *Pitt, *Middle Tenn. St.

* lost to FCS team(s)

My College Football Top 25, 2012 Week 10

If I had an AP vote, here is what my ballot would look after week ten, with my week nine picks in brackets:

1. Alabama [1]
2. Oregon [2]
3. Kansas State [3]
4. Ohio State [5]
5. Notre Dame [4]
6. Clemson [8]
7. Florida State [7]
8. Georgia [9]
9. Louisville [10]
10. Florida [11]
11. LSU [6]
12. Oklahoma [12]
13. Oregon St. [13]
14. Stanford [14]
15. South Carolina [15]
16. Texas A&M [17]
17. USC [16]
18. Nebraska [21]
19. Texas [25]
20. Louisiana Tech [24]
21. Mississippi St. [18]
22. Rutgers [NR]
23. Texas Tech [19]
24. UCLA [NR]
25. Michigan [NR]

Dropped out:  Boise St. [20], West Virginia [22], Arizona [23]

I almost went with: Toledo

I knew it! LSU, Louisiana Monroe

I blew it! Boise St.

I think the AP is overrating: UCLA, Toledo, Mississippi St.

I can't believe anyone gave votes this week to: San Diego St.

2012 ... And Still There Were 6

Everyone who hadn lost before last week didn't lose last week. Here are the super six (with AP rankings in parentheses followed by their opponent this week):

1. Alabama (1) - Texas A&M
2. Oregon (2) - @ Cal
3. Kansas St. (3) - @ TCU
4. Notre Dame (4) - @ Boston College
5. Ohio St. (5) - Bye
6. Louisville (10) - @ Syracuse

I wouldn't be surprised to see two teams lose this week. I would be surprised if Oregon was one of them, though.

My College Football Picks, 2012 Week 10

The big weekend has arrived. The Saturday we had circled on our calendars since August. It's here, with Alabama at LSU and USC hosting Oregon. It could have been #1, #2, #3 and #4 in two head-to-head games. Instead, we get a pair of games in which the home team is an 8 point dog. I would not have guessed it.

Anyhow, I'm picking against the spreads this week in all the games involving the BCS 25, plus PSU and Ohio St., and the games involving USC's unranked opponents. My choices are shown in bold. Seven *bets I really like are marked by an asterisk. See if your picks can beat mine.

Saturday, Nov 3:
Temple @ #10 Louisville -16
Missouri @ #7 Florida -17½
#12 Oklahoma @ Iowa St. +12
#16 Texas A&M @ #15 Miss St. +7
*#14 Stanford @ Colorado +28
*TCU @ #21 West Virginia -3½
*Pittsburgh @ #3 Notre Dame -17
*#20 Nebraska @ Michigan St. +1
Mississippi @ #6 Georgia -14
#23 Texas @ #18 Texas Tech -6½
*UTSA @ #25 LA Tech -30½
#13 Clemson @ Duke +12
*#4 Oregon @ #17 USC +8
#24 Okla St. @ #2 Kansas St. -8½
*#1 Alabama @ #5 LSU +8
#22 Arizona @ UCLA -3
San Diego St. @ #19 Boise St. -15½
Arizona St. @ #11 Oregon St. -3½

I'm watching these games outside the BCS 25, too:

Illinois @ Ohio St. -27½
Penn St. @ Purdue +3½
Syracuse @ Cincinnati -4½
Washington St. @ Utah -11

This Saturday, the ten teams I am rooting for, in order, are: USC, Pitt, Arizona#, Oregon St., Oklahoma St., LSU, San Diego St., Duke, Ole Miss, Temple and Iowa St. Although, to be honest, I'd be perfectly content to see Notre Dame ranked #1 tomorrow.

#Unless Oregon beats USC, in which case I'll root for UCLA.

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/odds

2012 ... And Then There Were 6

In the battle to become the last unbeaten team in America, there are 6 contenders left. Florida, Oregon St., Mississippi St., Rutgers & Ohio lost last weekend. Here are the super six (with AP rankings in parentheses followed by their opponent this week):

1. Alabama (1) - @ LSU
2. Oregon (2) - @ USC
3. Kansas St. (3) - Oklahoma St.
4. Notre Dame (4) - Pitt
5. Ohio St. (6) - Illinois
6. Louisville (12) - Temple

By conference, the totals are: Big 12 (1), Big East (1), Big Ten (1), Ind (1), Pac-12 (1) and SEC (1). The ACC, C-USA, Mountain West, MAC, WAC and Sun Belt have none. Everyone is in play, and from here on out, there will be no regular season games between unbeaten teams. So we will end the week with anywhere from 0 to 6 perfect teams. Two have tough road challenges. Two have tough home challenges. It'll be a good week.

The Bottom 10 - 2012 Week 9

We still have two winless teams: The MAC's Mass and Conference USA's Southern Miss. There are still many teams that have yet to win their first game against an FBS team. Here's the bottom of the barrel.

1. Massachusetts (0-8) [1] Longest losing streak in FBS at 11 games.  Next loss: @ N. Illinois
2. Southern Miss (0-8) [2] Six losses by double digits. Next loss: UAB
3. UNLV (1-8) * [3] Lost to Northern Arizona Next loss: New Mexico
4. Idaho (1-7) *[4] Defense gave up 60+ three times. Next loss: SJ State
5. Wyoming (1-7)* [6] Lost to Cal Poly. Next loss: Colorado St.
6. Army (1-7)* [7] Lost to Stony Brook. Next loss: Air Force
7. Colorado (1-7)* [8] Lost to Sacramento St. Next loss: Stanford
8. Memphis (1-7)* [9] Lost to Tenn-Martin. Next loss: @ Marshall
9. Kentucky (1-8) (10] First power conference team to 8 losses. Next loss: Vanderbilt
10. Akron (1-8) [NR] Only beat Morgan St. 66-6. Next loss: @ Kent St.

Dropped up: #5 Colorado St. (2-6) beat Hawaii.

Not far ahead: One-win teams that are winless against the FBS: Hawaii (beat Lamar), Kansas (beat S Dakota St.), UAB (beat SE Louisiana), Buffalo (beat Morgan St.), New Mexico State (beat Sacramento St.), and teams with no wins outside the Bottom Ten: Eastern Michigan (beat Army) and Auburn (beat Kentucky).

Crummy Game of the Weak: UAB @ Southern Miss

Blowout of the Weak: Stanford @ Colorado

Dishonorable mentions: *Pitt, *Middle Tenn. St.

* lost to FCS team(s)

My College Football Top 25, 2012 Week 9

If I had an AP vote, here is what my ballot would look after week nine, with my week eight picks in brackets:

1. Alabama [2]
2. Oregon [1]
3. Kansas State [3]
4. Notre Dame [8]
5. Ohio State [11]
6. LSU [6]
7. Florida State [9]
8. Clemson [12]
9. Georgia [13]
10. Louisville [14]
11. Florida [4]
12. Oklahoma [7]
13. Oregon St. [10]
14. Stanford [15]
15. South Carolina [17]
16. USC [5]
17. Texas A&M [18]
18. Mississippi St. [16]
19. Texas Tech [19]
20. Boise St. [20]
21. Nebraska [24]
22. West Virginia [NR]
23. Arizona [NR]
24. Louisiana Tech [NR]
25. Texas [NR]

Dropped out: Rutgers [21], Michigan [22], Wisconsin [23], Ohio [25]

I almost went with: Toledo, Oklahoma St.

I knew it! Rutgers

I blew it! Oklahoma, USC, Florida

I think the AP is overrating: LSU, UCLA

I can't believe anyone gave votes this week to: Louisiana Monroe